I was fortunate enough to escape this summer to the northern edges of our continent, visiting the wild lands of Newfoundland for the first time. The plant kingdom did not disappoint and I was completely enamored with the fauna. I was technically in the North Shore Forest Ecoregion dominated by Picea mariana, Black spruce and Picea glauca, White Spruce however, where I was specifically forests were few and far between with exposure far too great for dominant tree growth. This area is known as Eastern Hyper-Oceanic Barrens dominated by large expansive sphagnum bogs mixed with exposed alpine ridges. The larger plant species include Abies balsamea, Balsam fir, Alnus viride ssp. crispa, Mountain Alder but the diversity exists in the smaller species.
Some of the wonderful plant elders we encountered along the way:
(1) Rubus chamaemorus, Bakeapple with Empetrum nigrum, Black Crowberry and Iris in the background.
(2) Sarracenia purpurea, Purple Pitcher Plant (3) Drosera rotundifolia, Round-Leaved Sundew (another very cool carnivorous bog plant!) (4) Campanula rotundifolia, Common Harebell (5) Rhodiola rosea (formally Sedum Rosea), Roseroot/Goldenroot (6) Exposed cliffs on the ocean (7) Rhododendron groenlandicum, Labrador Tea (8) Vaccinium oxycoccos, Small Cranberry/Bog Cranberry (9) Cornus canadensis, Bunchberry (10) Bog pond (11) Thalictrum pubescens, Tall Meadow Rue/King of the Meadow (12) Eriophorum ssp. , Common Cotton Grass (13) Larix laricina, Eastern Larch
(14) Calopogon tuberosum, Tuberous Grass Pink Orchid (we also saw many Arethusa bulbosa Dragon’s Mouth Orchid alongside) (15) Iris hooker, Beach-Head Iris and Ranunculus repens, Creeping Buttercup
(16) Kalmia angustifolia, Bog Laurel
Terrific reference book: Wildflowers of Fogo Island and Change Island by Todd Boland.